Chelsea racism storm rifts healing as Fofana offers olive branch to Fernandez

Jacque Talbot

• Updated: 13 Sept 2024 09:00 BST
• 3 min read

Chelsea defender Welsey Fofana has opened up on the racism storm surrounding Enzo Fernandez.

After Argentina’s Copa America victory in the summer, Blues midfielder Fernandez posted a live video of himself in the Argentina team bus, chanting discriminatory songs about the France national team.

The French Football Federation (FFF) complained after the footage went viral while Chelsea released a statement saying that they would open disciplinary proceedings against the former Benfica man.

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Chelsea has a contingent of French players, including Axel Disasi, Malo Gusto, Christopher Nkunku, Benoit Badiashile, and Malo Gusto, who were reportedly furious with Fernandez.

And French centre-back Fofana posted his social media, describing the video as “uninhibited racism”. Bizarrely Chelsea opted not to ban Fernandez for the video, saying that he would be "educated by the club". And in a matter of weeks after, they gave the World Cup winner the captain's armband in the absence of Reece James.

Fofana speaks on Argentina team bus controversy once more

Fofana has since opened up about the controversy, saying that Fernandez now understood Chelsea teammates’ anger. In an interview with Free Foot and advanced by French Football News, the former Leicester City man said. “It was sorted out in a very good way.

“He came back, and we had a discussion with the club, with the manager; we had a meeting.

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"We explained why we took it badly because it was important for him to understand why it wasn’t a good thing for him to do and why we took it badly. We explained it to him.

"We understood in his speech that he didn’t understand that it could have hurt us. He didn’t understand that it was something serious.”

He continued: “The best thing to do is to educate him to make him understand that certain things, in certain countries, that are perhaps acceptable in that country but that in others it is very serious and that it is punishable by the law. I think he understood and now we move forward. We are a team and he is a great player. He is an example so I hope that he will be an example in the right way for everybody.”